The NSW Film and Television Office (FTO) has acted on the recent introduction of the Film Friendly package of legislation by developing a plain English version of the Local Government Filming Protocol.
The draft plain English Protocol will provide a basis for discussions with Councils and the NSW screen industry, to commence before the end of July. The FTO is also meeting with State Government Authorities to agree on consistent arrangements to support location filming.
Together with the Department of Premier and Cabinet and the Department of Local Government, the FTO will conduct extensive consultation with local council and industry representatives so that the protocol reflects practical and good practice arrangements in relation to approvals for location based filming.
Further, the FTO is consulting with industry representatives, Local and State Government regarding the role of its Production Liaison Unit to assist NSW to become more film friendly.
An experienced Producer and Line Producer has been appointed to assist in the preparation of the draft Protocol for the FTO and has agreed to work with the FTO to co-ordinate feedback on the future operations of the Production Liaison Unit. She will take into account the new legislation, consult with key stakeholders and review models developed in other territories.
"The FTO wants to capitalise on the opportunities created for the NSW screen industry by the new film friendly legislation package and also by the Federal tax offset," said Tania Chambers, FTO Chief Executive.
"The FTO wants to see a filming Protocol for local Councils and State Government Authorities in operation as soon as possible and to ensure that FTO is best structured to provide efficient and valuable information and resources on production and locations in New South Wales.
"There has been a lot of industry discussion about the notion of a "one stop shop" service to be provided by the FTO. We will look at the practical implications of this idea, given the large number of Councils and Government Authorities in NSW. A "first stop shop" may be an appropriate alternative arrangement to consider."
The draft filming protocol will have a series of appendices for discussion which will include:
* Generic application template
* Filmmaker Code of Conduct
The analysis of the Production Liaison Unit will take into account the implications of the new film friendly legislation and the Revised Local Government Filming Protocol including the requirement that Film Contact Officers be appointed by local councils.
[Release by TM Publicity]